Considering the dramatic effects of King Lear, evaluate the view that "despite the terrible suffering, the world of the play is not without hope ”.Say no. to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get the original essayIn his play King Lear, Shakespeare presents a society in which no one can emerge victorious. The end of the play serves as a lesson of sorts that tragedy makes no distinction between those who are good and those who are evil; for example, despite the constant contrast presented between Lear's daughters, they all end up dying. Suffering is a recurring theme in the play, illustrated not only by the deterioration of the characters' mental states, but also by depictions of brutal and graphic violence to symbolize physical suffering. Hope for humanity is not explicitly present in the play, but is nevertheless depicted through the change of hearts and development of certain characters. AG Bradley argues that “all history drives the accusation of prosperity into the brain.” Indeed, hope seems to be doomed at certain points in the play, perhaps especially because of the dramatic irony of Cordelia's death, just after Albany declares "the gods forbid her!" » Such cruelty on the part of the gods is a recurring theme in King Lear, and as the gods can be seen as the embodiment of hope, a world with carefree gods could therefore represent a world in which hope is totally futile. The final loss of hope is signified by the loss of Gloucester's faith; as a character who seemed to have an enduring belief, exclaiming "Kind Gods", even though he had been humiliated by Regan, it is surprising and somewhat disturbing to see Gloucester admit that "We are like flies to boys wanton for the Gods; They kill us for their sport. This demonstrates Gloucester's complete loss of faith when he attempts suicide, the most unforgivable sin in Shakespeare's time. The idea that in King Lear even the most hopeful characters will become hopeless suggests that the play takes place in a world without hope. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get personalized essayNevertheless, it must be recognized that while some characters lose faith because of circumstances, others improve thanks to them. The protagonist of the play is an eloquent example of this, because before suffering the suffering, he seems to have been a carefree and perhaps cruel man. At the beginning of the play, it was difficult to sympathize with the violent and narcissistic King; launching the "darkest aim" of the love test confirmed his inability to govern pragmatically, and his cruelty toward Cordelia and Kent, the play's most loyal characters, depicts his poor judgment toward others. Later, however, Lear states that he will "kneel down and ask forgiveness of you [Cordelia]", showing his immense development in his ability to accept fault and feel compassion. This implies that suffering was necessary for Lear to improve; a Christian audience would have supported this message as one that promotes hope, rather than destroying it, because redemptive suffering was an important aspect of the religion. Edmund, too, changes his ways at the end of the play. He says “whatever good I want to do, despite my own nature,” which denotes an attempt to challenge his typically evil personality to regain morality. The act of redemption..